It is mandatory for security and intelligence agencies to conduct a routine de-bugging check of not just defence minister A.K. Antony’s office but that of other high-ranking officials as well. A proper record of such technical checks is maintained in a log book.
Sources said the team of technical experts from the Intelligence Bureau who conducted a thorough examination of the defence minister’s office found that the alarm was triggered by a “short-circuit of some wires in a sensor which was subsequently fixed”.
“It was a false alarm which went off due to a technical snag in one of the de-bugging sensors and not because some monitoring device had been detected. Nothing suspicious like a device, any markings or a sticky substance was found in the room. In fact, after the electrical wires were fixed we again checked the room and the alarm was working perfectly fine. It is good that MI officials were alert and sounded their superiors. From our side the issue is over,” a top intelligence official said.
After the incident, a detailed report regarding the technical glitch was sent to the defence secretary’s office and the matter ended there. The government, sources said, was merely playing safe in getting a second opinion from the Intelligence Bureau as last year a similar controversy was reported from the office of finance minister Pranab Mukherjee.